“HUMAN TRIALS” LEAD TO MAYHEM ON THIS WEEKS EPISODE OF THE 100

If season two hadn’t proved that the youthful ensemble has grown into complex mature individuals already, this episode provided all that and more including a barrage of brutality. After last week’s episode Anya was killed on the brink of a pact between grounders and the 100, Clarke is taken into custody by the ark militant faction, not realizing she’s one of them. Abby notices Clarke despite being covered in blood and mud, and is finally reunited with her mother for the first time since the pilot episode. The reunion is a lot to process for Clarke who assumed her mother was dead, and is overwhelmed with emotion putting their past conflicts aside in a very well acted scene. On Mt Weather, Jasper meets with the president Dante who tells him Clarke managed to escape and won’t pursue her. Kane and his soldiers continue their trek to meet the leader of the grounders (well your people killed one last night!)

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Kane switches up his approach and seems keen on making peace, putting trust in the hostage to lead them to their location. Clarke wakes up after a much needed 10 hour nap, covered in cuts and bruises clearly in rough shape but remains ready to continue finding her friends, telling her mother she doesn’t need protection. Clarke and Raven share a brief welcome, but when Clarke sees Bellamy and Octavia return, she almost immediately rushes to him. They embrace as music crescendos and sparks fly, congrats Bellarke shippers! With Clarke, Bellamy, Octavia and Raven reunited things feel complete…oh wait, there’s Finn. When Clarke asks about him Bellamy informs her he left with Murphy to find her and the others, so a now fruitless mission.

We see Finn and Murphy watch over a group of grounders that include families, and Finn prepares to go in guns blazing to find his friends. Despite Murphy’s protests Finn decides it’s the only course of action. We find Lincoln strapped down in Mt. Weather by Cage, the son of Dante and head of security, who injects him with a dosage of an unknown narcotic and is subjected to a high pitch noise that seems to cause pain. The ark council continues to debate their next move which leads to conflict between Abby and Clarke, as Abby wants to leave Finn and Murphy to fend for themselves in order to aid Kane. After being “grounded” Clarke and Bellamy decide to attempt a rescue mission anyways with the assistance of Octavia as a guide and Raven as their escape assistant. As they leave we see Raven alone longing to be in the midst of the chaos to help those she cares about but her physical limitations are binding.

Jasper meets up with Maya to tell her he’s leaving and as she attempts to dissuade him, she notices an alarm signaling radiation leak and her skin begins to boil, but Monty and Jasper seem perfectly fine except for the paralyzing fear of what could happen. Bellamy and Clarke sit awake in the woods, and Bellamy expresses concern for Finn’s mental health and details his aggression and merciless tendencies. They agree to find Finn, Lincoln, and their friends at Mt Weather. When the severity sets in they decide to skip sleep altogether and continue on. Finn sets a fire to cause a distraction at the grounder camp and takes a hostage demanding their leader and comrades. They try to explain they don’t have anyone they seek and Finn insists on searching. (This won’t end well..)

After the radiation “leak” Jasper volunteers his blood to save Maya because supposedly the space people’s blood keeps the invulnerable to exposure. Jasper begins to get lightheaded and supposedly feels her sedation which they say is perfectly normal. Monty noticed a slip up and says if this has never been done how do you know what’s normal? She tries to cover it up but it’s to late he feels something is wrong. Abby confronts Raven who helped them sneak out and when Raven shows she’s with them, Abby slaps her in anger. Abby tries to subdue herself more and says she’s just a kid, and Raven disagrees saying “She stopped being a kid the day you sent her down here to die.” Touché Raven.

Kane and the troops cut the prisoner free and allow him safe passage with Kane’s accompaniment tor make peace, however The grounder quickly turns on Kane and renders him unconscious. When we next see Kane he is being thrown into a confinement area underground when Jaha appears from the dark as a captive! Anyone else having some major Saw flashbacks?! Finn and Bellamy raid the grounder camp while looking for their allies and Finn continues his warpath waving guns in faces and threatening lives. (seriously, chill dude!) Murphy plays devils advocate and persuades him from killing an unarmed woman who lies face down in the mud in a scene that had my heart racing. The Blake siblings and Clarke come across the Lincoln monument where Octavia led them and points out where the reapers struck, still shaken from losing her love.

Cage comes back to the torture chamber where Lincoln is tied down and the unpleasant noise is played that sends him and another into a frenzy, when phase two begins with another round of the drug and soon after was set to battle with someone in a similar predicament. Lincoln comes out on top after beating his opponent to death, only to inject another dose of the drug he obviously now craves. Maya comes to in the hospital ward with her burns healed and is informed Jasper saved her life. The doctor meets with Cage and Dante where we establish they are the core of Mt Weather. Dante the president, Cage head of security who creates reapers as soldiers and finally Dr Tsing, their primary medic. They discuss the first trial with the space peoples blood was successful and Tsing wants to move forward with the others for more trails which Dante dismisses for the time being.

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Back at the major hostage situation, Finn shoots someone trying to flee which starts an uprising with Finn massacring numerous villagers mercilessly. I knew I hated this guy but now my anger for Finn is unreal. Clarke and the others find the devastation in wake of Finn, and he approaches her as if nothing happened. “I found you” Finn says as shell of a human being. What will they do with an unstable Finn? Is Lincoln long gone? So much is going on and we won’t have more answers until The 100 returns in early December

Aedan’s Final Thoughts:
-Bellarke Reunion!
-Glad to see the core re-assembling slowly but surely
-While I may not care for Finn, the actor Thomas Mcdonell deserves major credit for his insane transformation
-Lincoln is definitely going to become a reaper, hopefully love conquers somehow?